Live Review Photos: Kirk Von Hammett’s Fear Festevil Regency Ballroom

METALLICA guitarist held the inaugural Kirk Von Hammett’s Fear FestEvil horror metal convention In San Francisco, CA at The Regency Ballroom. The three-day conference showcased some of the most valuable horror collectibles in the world, exclusive discussion panels, a large vendor area, and special guest appearances were held throughout the day. Musical guests included Bay Area thrash legends Exodus and Death Angel, doom metal practitioners Orchid from San Francisco, along with Carcass, and Death Division.

I have never attended a horror convention like Fangoria, so this was a first for me. The displays, the vendor area, the panels were all just an incredible experience and very well organized. The horror collection – dubbed Kirk’s Crypt – was presented on the fourth floor of the 100+ year Regency Ballroom, which also happens to be a Masonic Temple, oh and it’s presumably haunted. In 2012 Kirk documented this expansive collection in “Too Much Horror Business, The Kirk Hammett Collection” , a hardback, coffee table book with over 300 full color pages. You check our our photos from Kirk’s Crypt along Orchid and Death Angel’s sets below.

On the music side Kirk threw some love to the local scene that showcased some of the finest Bay Area metal talent with sets from Exodus, Orchid, & Death Angel and a special appearance by Carcass. Also in attendance was Slash, Slayer’s Kerry King, and in full make-up ex-Misfits Doyle all appearing on the festivals last panel discussion moderated by Kirk Hammett. Now with all these heavyweights in attendance I was hoping for an all-star jam for Death Angel’s but no cigar. But even cooler was meeting Kerry King who hung out and long after the last panel ended shootin’ the shit with fans, posing for photos, and and signing autographs, class act.

The special guest on each evening was our host Kirk Hammett, who strapped on his Mummy ESP for encores on both nights with Exodus and Death Angel. Keeping with the horror theme Exodus’ encore with Kirk was a heavy cover of Blue Oyster Cult’s Godzilla, complete with a 6ft Godzilla dude doing the demon dance. I couldn’t help but wonder if 85 year old HARUO NAKAJIMA, the original Godzilla monster suit actor who was a panel guest that day, was sweating to the oldies in there. Hail GOJIRA! For Death Angel’s encore Kirk and the crowd sung Happy Birthday to Mark Osegueda complete with cake and a 2 liter bottle of gin before ripping into a blistering cover of Black Sabbath Dio era Heaven and Hell before closing the night out with Metallica’s Trapped Under ice. Metal fan or Horror fan it really doesn’t get any cooler that this.

Throughout the day horror themed panel discussions ran every hour. Academy Award-Winning FX Master Joel Harlow session entitled live “Blood & Guts” transformed Scott Ian (Anthrax) into Jack the Ripper; The original Leatherface Gunnar Hansen (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Tom Savini (Dawn of the Dead, From Dusk Till Dawn, Creepshow and more), The women of horror — PJ Soles from the original (Halloween (1978), Carrie and Rock ‘N Roll High School), Jordan Ladd (Cabin Fever, Hostel 2 and Death Proof); Bill Moseley (The Devil’s Rejects, Army of Darkness, Halloween (2007)); the Legacy of Horror included the living descendants of Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney; and two of the most famous Japanese sci-fi/horror figures ever, Haruo Nakajima, the original Godzilla, and Bin Furuya, the original Ultraman.

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